Day two at SECs wraps-up

Feb. 23, 2013

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Vanderbilt track and field team wrapped-up day two of action at the 2013 Southeastern Conference Track & Field Championships, highlighted by Lily Williams advancing to the finals in the mile.

Williams and Kristen Findley both ran personal bests in the mile. Williams clocked a time of 4:48.17 to finish eighth and advance to tomorrow’s finals. Findley’s mark of 4:49.76 was a second shy of advancing. Sara Barron was just behind Findley at 4:49.89.

Four Commodores competed in the 60-meter hurdles, led by Faith Washington with a time of 8.72, which was a personal best. Washington was followed by Jennifer Cannon (8.75), Janetra Gleaves (8.80) and Skyler Carpenter (9.06).

Katherine Delaney was the only Vanderbilt runner in the 800 meters, clocking a time of 2:13.79 for a personal best.

Commodores on the track concluded with the 3,000 meters. Hannah Jumper clocked the top Vanderbilt time and the best time for a freshman in the event at 9:46.86 to finish 11th. Grace Orders posted a time of 9:53.58 (18th), followed by Vanessa Valentine in 10:08.35 (24th) and Rebecca Chandler in 10:10:07 (26th).

On the field side, Morgan Toone cleared 3.70 meters (12′ 1.5″) to finish tied for 16th in the pole vault. Skyler Carpenter placed 21st in the long jump with a mark of 5.53 meters (18′ 1.75″).

Tomorrow’s action will include Williams in the mile finals at 1:25 p.m. Clarie Benjamin, Amira Joseph, Allie Scalf, Jordan White & Megan Yohe will compete in the 5,000 meters at 3:15 p.m. The high jump, with Ellie Tidman and Brionne Williams competing, begins at 1:45 p.m.

Vanderbilt will also compete in the Distance Medley Relay at 4:10 p.m. and the final event of the meet, the 4×400-meter relay at 4:40 p.m.

Steve Keith Quotes
On the pole vault…
“Pole vault started us off and it was good to see Morgan (Toone) clear the opening bar, which was just a centimeter off her indoor PR. She hasn’t had many indoor meets, so hopefully this will give her some good momentum into outdoor.”

On Lily Williams in the mile…
LIly ran an indoor best and ended up being the only freshman to make the 10-person final. She’s making nice progress since she had to take the fall season off to recover from injury.”

On Findley and Barron in the mile…
“Some tough races in the mile, as it was as fast as it has ever been to make the finals. (Kristen Findley) had an indoor PR and barely missed, as did Sara. Both ran good, smart races, but we just didn’t have the finish in the last 100 meters tonight to sneak into the top 10.”

On the 3,000 meters…
“The 3K crowd ran hard and got some great SEC Championship experience. Hannah (Jumper) still has a lingering cold, which slowed her a little, but she also now has a greater appreciation for what it takes to score at conference.”

On the experience the younger runners have gained…
“10 of the 11 women who ran on the track today are freshman and sophomores. They are getting valuable experience while representing Vanderbilt at a high level.”

On the final day of the meet…
“We have some good scoring opportunities tomorrow with Brionne (Williams) and Ellie (Tidman) in the high jump, Lily (Williams) in the mile, five women in the 5K led by Jordan (White) and Allie (Scalf) and both the distance medley and 4×400 relays.”